BRANDES S.G. ASH

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BRANDES S. G. ASH

EXPERIENCEBrandes’ practice focuses on all areas of family law, including divorce, custody, child and spousal support, property allocation and issues involving same-sex couples. Brandes is a trained Collaborative lawyer as well as a trained mediator and serves in both capacities in family law matters.

Prior to joining the Burr Law Firm in 2016, Brandes served for three years as an Assistant Attorney General in the Litigation Section of the Child Support Services Division of the Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia, where she focused on establishing and enforcing parentage, child support and medical support orders.

COMMITMENT AND PROFESSIONAL CREDENTIALSBrandes is an active member of the D.C. Bar Family Law Community (formerly known as Family Law Section) and served on the Family Law Section Steering Committee from 2014-2017. Brandes also serves on the Board of the Collaborative Project of DC. Brandes has held several additional leadership positions in local and national professional organizations including: Chief of Communications for the National Bar Association; President of the Greater Washington Area Chapter of the National Bar Association’s Women Lawyers Division (“GWAC”); 2nd Vice President of the Washington Bar Association; Chair of the American Bar Association (“ABA”) Family Law Section Child Support Committee; Vice Chair of the ABA Family Law Section Diversity Committee; CLE and Finance Committee Member for the ABA Family Law Section; Liaison to the ABA Commission on Racial and Ethnic Diversity; and a Board member of the non-profit organization, Foundations for Home & Community. Brandes also served as an inaugural class member of both the D.C. Bar John Payton Leadership Academy and the ABA Family Law Section Diversity Fellowship program. Among other activities, Brandes has also been a longtime volunteer at the D.C. Bar Advice and Referral Clinic.

EDUCATION AND TRAININGBrandes received her law degree from Howard University School of Law, where she served as a founding member and President of the Howard Family Law Society. She received her MPA from George Mason University and her bachelor’s degree from Virginia Commonwealth University. Brandes clerked for the Honorable Herman Dawson of the Circuit Court for Prince Georges County, Maryland and is admitted to practice in Maryland and the District of Columbia.